The Fear Within
by Enterprising Daytona
Summary: The Enterprise and Challenger crews face demons not only in space but in their dreams that threatens to destroy them both. A continuation of the story line from "Where Help Is Needed Most."
1. Prologue

**Author's Note: I do not own any of the characters of Star Trek: Enterprise. They belong to the creators of the show and to Paramount and or Viacom itself. **

Hello everyone. I know it's been awhile, but here is another fan fiction that I wrote for Enterprise after the show had ended a few years ago. This story includes the Challenger crew, who we met in the other fan fiction I wrote "Where Help is Needed Most." This is sort of a Halloween/horror story that attempts to turn both crews against each other. Enjoy!

Enterprise: The Fear Within

_Prologue_

Footsteps pounded on the cold, steel floors. Two shadows danced on the walls. Another came not too far behind them.

"C'mon, move!" Commander Charles "Trip" Tucker III yelled. His eyes were wide with fear as he looked back to his companion and further back to his pursuer.

His companion, the Captain of the Challenger, stared into his eyes, the same look of fear in them. Her brown hair flailed as she ran, her breath was heavy and the sweat ran down her brow.

"Trip!" she yelled. "We have to stop him! We can't keep running!"

"We stop and he'll take us out," he panted. "Ya know if he does, we can't save 'em, any of 'em." He wiped the sweat of his brow on his arm.

"Trip, let's go," the Captain told him. She grabbed his arm and dragged him towards the nearest corridor.

They pressed their backs against a wall. Their pursuer ran past them. Trip and the Captain held their breaths and kept quiet. They began to reminisce on the past three days and what drove both of the crews to the madness that had gripped everyone, leaving both ships at the mercy of space.

_End of Prologue _


	2. Chapter 1

_Chapter 1_

_Captain's Starlog: October 28, 2155_

_Enterprise has been working extensively with Challenger and it's crew to deal with the Romulans. Starfleet has requested cooperation between all three starships so that any Romulan attempt to halt our efforts for the Federation will be handled in the best possible manner. I know that Starfleet and all of us who serve in it are capable of handling the situation. _

Captain Jonathan Archer looked at his dog, Porthos and looked back at his computer. He sighed.

"Let's just hope that we don't get involved in any more conflicts that can escalate to an all out war," he replied under his breath.

The intercom chirped.

"Go ahead," Archer said.

"Captain," T'Pol replied. "We have reached the rendezvous coordinates."

"On my way," Archer told her.

A few moments later, Archer arrived on the bridge.

"Report," he replied.

"We have reached the coordinates of where Challenger should be, however, they have not arrived yet," T'Pol informed him.

"Captain," Hoshi replied. "We're being hailed. It's Challenger."

Archer cracked a smile. It was good to see the Captain of Challenger again, especially when it involved joint missions. When they had first met, both of them were at odds with each other due to differences in command style. Now, it was as if they were old friends and they rarely fought.

"Put it through," he said.

Hoshi put the transmission through.

On the view screen, the faces of the senior staff of Challenger appeared.

"Hello, Captain," the Captain of Challenger responded.

"It's good to see you again, Captain," Archer replied back.

"Permission to dock," she told him.

"Permission granted," he replied back.

Challenger turned itself around in order to dock safely and securely with Enterprise.

_End of Chapter 1_


	3. Chapter 2

_Chapter 2_

After Challenger had docked, Archer, T'Pol and Trip were waiting to greet their fellow Starfleet officers.

The doors to the docking bay opened. The Captain of Challenger, her first officer, Michael, and Steve Anderson, Challenger's chief engineer were on the other side.

"Permission to come aboard," the Captain requested.

"Permission granted," Archer told her.

The Challenger crewmembers came across the threshold. As soon as they did, all three of them began to relax. They exchanged handshakes with the Enterprise staff waiting for them.

"I hate Starfleet protocols," the Captain of Challenger replied as she walked next to Archer.

"Don't let Starfleet hear you say that," Archer warned her with a laugh.

"I don't care," she said. "As it is, I'm in the doghouse with some of them anyway."

"The doghouse?" T'Pol inquired.

"Human expression for bein' in trouble," Trip informed her.

"I don't see why you would be in trouble, Captain," T'Pol replied. "Your missions with us have been successful. You've done nothing wrong."

"Some of what we've done without working with you guys cooperatively is what they're mad about," the Captain told her. "I've said and done some things that some of the boys back in San Fran are not too happy about. Either way, they don't understand some of our temperaments and I don't care if they do or not."

"Don't let them get to you," Archer assured her. "We're here to see what happened to the Tumara."

The Captain of Challenger sighed and smiled at Archer. Her brown eyes met his green ones.

"You're right," she replied. "I'm just venting out my frustrations to the only few people in Starfleet in trust. Let's see what our combined resources can do."

_End of Chapter 2_


	4. Chapter 3

_Chapter 3_

"So what do we know?" the Captain asked.

"The Tumara has been missing for a week," Archer began. "No distress signals or communications of any kind since then."

"We're talkin' a Bermuda Triangle type disappearance right, Capt'n?" Trip asked.

"Sounds like it," Michael commented.

"If you believe in those ghost stories," the Captain of Challenger replied.

"Wait a minute," Steve stated. "The Tumara's last known coordinates were about here, right?"

"Correct," T'Pol told him.

"Do you think the ship may have experienced a type of anomaly like in the Expanse?" Steve asked.

"Is he always this in depth?" Malcolm asked.

"Ask Captain Archer," the Captain of Challenger replied. "Steve's a Stanford grad like he is."

Archer shot her a look. She smiled innocently at him.

"Here we go again," Michael sighed. "Why did I sign up for this?" He look up at the ceiling.

"She forced you, remember," Steve replied pointing at his commanding officer with his thumb.

"Next time you drag me into somethin', forget it," Michael stated pointing his right index finger at her.

"You'd drop everything if I dragged you down to Florida to beat Carl's ass," she commented. "You still want to haul him in as it is."

"I'm not the only one," he said sarcastically. His eyes became filled with pain. _Florida,_ he thought. _The place where we could finally prove everyone wrong._

"So the Tumara could have been sucked into another reality, another plain of existence?" the Captain of Challenger asked.

"Possibly," T'Pol stated. "Although the Vulcan Science Directorate does not believe this to be true. However, I am trying to keep an open mind that this could be the case."

"What has your crew found out?" Archer asked the Captain.

"There is a belt not far from here," she told him as she pointed it out on the screen in the command center. "It appears that the belt is moving at a slow rate of speed. It also appears to have the characteristics of a mist or something."

"More scans need to be taken," Michael informed Archer.

"Let's get to work to see where the Tumara is and if the crew is safe," Archer replied.

With that, both crews went their separate ways.

_End of Chapter 3_


	5. Chapter 4

_Chapter 4_

After the exhaustive efforts of both crews turned up little information, many of them called it a night.

"I could use some shut eye," Michael replied on Challenger.

"Here here," Steve agreed.

"Well, goodnight Mikey," Steve replied.

"You like to tease me so much don't you?" Michael asked.

"The Captain does it all the time, why can't the rest of us?" Steve told him.

Both men laughed and headed for their quarters.

"I hope that we're able to find out the what happened to the Tumara," Archer replied as he walked with the Captain.

"Don't worry," she replied. "Sooner or later they'll show up and we'll make sure Phlox and Cameron give them a full check up."

"I hope you're right," he told her. "I have a bad feeling that something happened to them."

"Let's just hope it doesn't happen to us," the Captain said. "Goodnight, Captain." She walked back past the threshold onto Challenger.

"Call me Jon," Archer commented. "It's not a crime to call me by my first name."

"I feel as if it is," she informed him. The docking bay doors closed behind her.

_End of Chapter 4_


	6. Chapter 5

_Chapter 5_

As many of the crew members were asleep, the mist outside started to move in the direction of both ships. It started to enclose around them in an almost suffocating fashion.

Down one of the corridors, an apparition appeared.

"Time to bring out some of these beings deepest fears," the apparition spoke. It began to move towards several of the crews' quarters on Enterprise.

The next morning, in Engineering, Trip was running several diagnostics on the engines.

What caught his attention was the tardiness of some of his staff. Some were late, some did not report for duty.

"Kelby," Trip hollered. "You're late."

"I'm sorry, sir," Kelby replied. "I was visiting Phlox for something to help me sleep. I had a rough night last night."

"That's the same thing that Martinez and four others reported, Kelby," Trip said. "Make sure you're not late again."

"Aye aye sir," Kelby responded. He went back to his work.

"Are you sure you're alright?" Steve asked some of his staff.

"We'll be okay sir," Lieutenant Camile Morgan, Colin's sister replied. "It's just many of us had a bad night's sleep last night."

"Make sure you get something to help you sleep for tonight from Dr. Andrews," Steve suggested. "A lot of you look terrible."

"Yes sir," his staff responded.

Steve looked back at his staff. _Something's wrong,_ he thought. _I have to tell the Captain._

With that, he left to head towards the Captain's quarters.

_End of Chapter 5_


	7. Chapter 6

_Chapter 6_

The Captain of Challenger sat at her desk, looking over status reports. Her door signaled.

"Come in," she replied.

Steve entered from the other side.

"Hey Steve," the Captain said. "What can I do for ya?"

"It's about my staff," Steve informed her. "I had five of them late today. All complaining of not enough sleep. Even Colin's sister was late."

The Captain stared at him.

"Camile is never late for duty," she replied. "She's always on time, according to Colin."

"That's what I thought," Steve commented. "I'm sorry if I disturbed you."

"No, it's alright," the Captain told him. "After all, you're informing me that your staff came late today when they rarely do. I was wondering why mess hall was crowded with people looking for black coffee."

"You think something's up?" Steve asked.

"Only one way to find out," she stated. "Have Cameron make up enough sedatives in case we have more people reporting sleep deprivation later today or even tomorrow morning."

"Understood," Steve replied. "What about Enterprise?"

"I am going to inform them of the situation," she told him. "See if they're experiencing the same problem." She stopped and looked at Steve.

"By the way," she began. "You had no problems sleeping last night, right?"

"I did, a little," Steve told her. "I just thought about something good in my life and I was fine. Did you experience the same problem?"

"I did have problem sleeping, yes," she informed him. "However, the usual dreams I get are not as violent."

"How bad?" Steve asked.

"Florida replayed in my head again," she told him. "However, I thought of my family in happier times and I thought of Jonathan."

"As long we have good memories, then we're fine," Steve surmised.

"Seems that way," she concluded. "Let's apprise Enterprise of the situation."

_End of Chapter 6_


	8. Chapter 7

_Chapter 7_

The Captain of Challenger and her staff had gone to Archer and his crew to apprise everyone of the situation that was unfolding.

"That's the same thing that's been happenin' to my staff," Trip told Archer. "People who are usually on time are coming in late."

"What tipped me off was the rush to get black coffee in mess hall," the Captain of Challenger replied. "However, I shrugged it off. But when Steve told me about his crew, especially when the staff is usually on time, the red flag went up."

"No caution flags?" Michael asked. The Captain elbowed him in the ribs.

"Ex nay on the caution ray," the Captain told him through gritted teeth.

"Maybe it's has something to do with being in this region of space," Archer replied. "However, I'll make sure Phlox knows about it and if it escalates, we'll have to find other alternatives."

"We just wanted to let you know in case anything else happens," the Captain informed him.

"That's fine," Archer replied. He smiled at her.

"Did you find anything else about the Tumara?" the Captain asked Archer.

"We've turned up nothing else," Archer informed her. "It's as if they disappeared off the face of the earth."

"Maybe they don't wanna be found, Capt'n" Trip suggested.

"Or someone does not want them to be found," the Captain of Challenger stated.

Everyone in the room looked at her.

"It's a possibility that we are dealing with aliens who attacked the ship and took it with them," she suggested.

"If they did," T'Pol informed them. "A warp signature would have been left behind."

"Hypothetically, we could be dealing with aliens who are beyond our comprehension of space travel," the Captain told T'Pol.

"That is another possibility we have not explored yet," T'Pol agreed.

"Let's just keep working with what we have," Archer told everyone.

"Understood," his crew told him.

The crew began to disperse.

"We have to get back to Challenger," the Captain told Archer. "I want to make sure that no one has gone off the deep end yet."

"That would be best," Archer agreed with her.

The Captain of Challenger and her staff left to check on the conditions of their crew as well.

_End of Chapter 7_


	9. Chapter 8

_Chapter 8_

_He was home._

_He had finally succeeded in completing the mission. _

_Why did he feel so hollow? Why couldn't he feel?_

_He walked down the halls to find no one there for him._

_No one._

_No one._

_He saw someone. He could not tell who it was. _

_He pointed at him and called him many things. _

_He ran away. _

_Farther he ran, but he could not escape. _

_The pursuer kept after him._

_He reached a dead end. _

_No escape._

_His pursuer cornered him._

_His pursuer took off his hood._

_He screamed._

Archer awoke. His breathing was heavy and he was sweating profusely. He got up out of his bed and washed his face.

_That's the second time I had that dream,_ he thought. _And it keeps getting worse and more violent. Why can't I find out who it is?_

Trip was sleeping soundly in his quarters. The apparition tried to reach him. Alas, it could not.

"Your demons have been dealt with," the apparition hissed. "I can not let you live for long."

The apparition disappeared.

Trip did not know it was even there.

The Captain of Challenger lay in her bed sound asleep.

She dreamed of her family. Her mom, her dad, her sister, her brother and her cousin when they were home together on one of those rare weekends off.

_It was such a lovely day. Not a cloud in the sky. Nothing could dampen the nice day they were having. _

_Her brother and her cousin were jamming on the front porch with a guitar and drum set in tow. Her sister was helping her mom inside._

_They were so young then. She was ten, her sister a year younger than her. Her cousin and her brother were three years behind the Captain in age as well._

_She was with her dad. She was trying to make sure her dad stayed behind her and couldn't catch her. _

_She loved her dad. He meant everything to her. He was her idol, the same way in which everybody adored him. _

_"Daddy," she called to him. _

_He was not behind her. _

_She stopped and looked around._

_"Daddy?" she called again._

_This time she was the same age as she is now. _

_"Daddy?" she asked again._

_All she heard was the squealing of tires and the impact of the car against the outside retaining wall._

The Captain woke with a start. She got up out of bed and placed her face in her hands.

"Oh God," she moaned. "Why do you have to torture me like this? To relive that day again and again. Make it stop."

_End of Chapter 8_


End file.
